OPENING TIPS Returning to action after a 10-day break due to finals, UC Davis will compete in the first of five games scheduled throughout an eight-day timespan starting with Saturday's game at Stanford. After facing the Cardinal at Maples Pavilion, the Aggies will return home for a Monday night matchup against Easter Washington before heading to Logan, Utah, to square-off against Southern Illinois, Utah State and Nicholls State at the World Vision Challenge. That tournament will also serve as the final non-conference games prior to UC Davis' Big West opener at UC Irvine on Dec. 29.

`TIS THE SEASON TO GIVEToys for Tots held a toy drive during the Aggies' home game vs. San Jose State, an opportunity that numerous fans took full advantage by donating new and unused toys for local children in need. The men's basketball program thanks everyone who made last Wednesday's toy drive a successful event, and encourages people who are interested in donating their time and/or additional items to visit www.toysfortots.com.

TRULY A TEAM EFFORTAggie men's basketball would also like to thank all fans that participated in the team's food drive during its home opener vs. Northern Arizona on Nov. 18. Due to the generosity of its supporters, 315 pounds of food was donated to the Food Bank of Yolo County to help local families in need. Individuals who are interested in volunteering for, or donating their time and/or items to the Food Bank of Yolo County are encouraged to visit www.foodbankyc.org.

LISTEN LIVE TO UC DAVIS MEN'S BASKETBALLFor the second year, all UC Davis men's basketball games will be aired on KSAC (105.5 FM) . Pregame begins 30 minutes before tip-off, Scott Marsh will call the play-by-play with Bill Herenda providing analysis for most contests this season. All games will also be streamed free of charge on ucdavisaggies.com.

FOLLOW ALONG WITH LIVE STATSLive stats are available for all home and most UC Davis road games by visiting ucdavisaggies.com. Media are advised to select "Media View" on Gametracker as stats updated the quickest on this medium when covering home games.

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!Season and single-game tickets for Aggie home games can be purchased through the "Tickets" link at www.ucdavisaggies.com, in person at the UC Davis Ticket Office, or by calling the ticket office at (530) 752-1915.

AGGIE SPORTS UPDATEUC Davis Athletics, in partnership with KSAC (105.5 FM) in Sacramento, debuted "Aggie Sports Update" on Dec. 4. A weekly radio show featuring interviews with coaches and student-athletes, updates on all 23 varsity teams and opportunities to win tickets and prizes, the 30-minute show will air every Tuesday, at 6:30 p.m. except for Dec. 25 and Jan. 1 throughout the basketball season. The show will be hosted by longtime Aggie broadcaster Scott Marsh, with KSAC Sports Director Phil Getman also taking the microphone from time to time. Besides airing on KSAC, "Aggie Sports Update" will stream live on UC Davis' official athletics website, www.ucdavisaggies.com.

A CLOSER LOOK AT STANFORDAlso returning to action after a sizable layoff, Stanford will compete in its first game in 13 days when it faces UC Davis. Unlike the Aggies who have only played two games on its home floor, the Cardinal will host its sixth game of the season Saturday afternoon. Even though Stanford possesses the lowest field goal and three-point shooting percentages in the Pac-12, the Cardinal also possess a defense that is ranked No. 4 in the Pac-12, and No. 56 in the country. Stanford enters Saturday's game averaging 69.3 ppg compared to an Aggie offense ranked No. 72 in the nation averaging 74.5 ppg. UC Davis is the second Big West team to face Stanford this season, Cal State Fullerton faced the Cardinal in its home opener (11/12/12), a game that ended in Stanford's favor by 13 points.

UC DAVIS VS. THE NATIONEntering its third week of action, UC Davis finds itself amongst the nation's top-50 men's basketball programs in a number of statistical categories. The Aggies' are ranked No. 15 in three-point field goals made per game (8.8 3-pt. FGM), No. 33 in assists (16.2 apg), No. 47 in three-point field goal percentage (.381 3-pt. FG pct.) and No. 49 in field goal percentage (.469 FG pct.).

ALL EYES ARE ON HIMThe Big West Conference's most successful three-point shooter this season, Ryan Sypkens' 5.0 three-point. field goals made per game average is the highest in the nation (through games of Dec. 10). The junior guard's .556 three-point percentage is also the fifth-highest figure amongst all players nationwide.

CALL HIM MR. WINDEXThe second to earn a top-10 statistical spot, senior guard Ryan Howley is ranked No. 1 in the Big West Conference, and No. 27 in the nation with his 10.0 rebounds per game average.

POSTING PROLIFIC POINT TOTALSSophomore guard Corey Hawkins competes the trio of Aggies who possess a top-30 individual statistical ranking this week as he is No. 18 in scoring at 21.4 ppg. Hawkins is also ranked No. 35 in free throw percentage at .905.

BRYNTON LEMAR INKS NLI WITH AGGIESBrynton Lemar, a 6-foot-3 guard from St. Augustine High School in San Diego has signed a national letter of intent to join the UC Davis men's basketball program. Throughout his three years at St. Augustine under the tutelage of head coach Mike Haupt, he has led his team to victories in more than two-thirds of its games played. With Lemar in the lineup, the Saints have compiled a 59-30 overall record.

Lemar averaged 25.0 points per game throughout the 2011-12 season for a St. Augustine squad that finished with a 23-7 overall record and advanced to its California Interscholastic Federation section quarterfinals for the third consecutive season. Shortly after his junior campaign concluded, Lemar was the only member of his team to earn a coveted spot on the All-Western League's first team.

During his sophomore season, the combo guard averaged 22.0 ppg and helped his team advance to the quarterfinals after posting a 23-7 mark. He averaged 15.0 ppg throughout the 2009-10 season, his first as a member of the Saints' boys basketball program.

SYPKENS TIES PROGRAM RECORDOn Nov. 28 at Nevada, Ryan Sypkens shot 8-for-13 from three to finish with 24 points. The junior guard is the second Aggie to make a school-record eight three-point field goals as junior guard Tyler Les also drained eight from distance last season against San Jose State (12/20/11). Sypkens' eight baskets from three are also a new career high.

SHARES WELL WITH OTHERSResponsible for nearly half of his team's assists at Nevada (11/28/12), senior guard Paolo Mancasola also set a new career high by finishing with eight assists. This is the second time this season that he set a new career best in this statistical category as it is a one-assist improvement over his previous high set against Northern Arizona (11/18/12).

CAREER-HIGH CORRELATION?The Aggies' game at Nevada was the second occasion this season that Ryan Sypkens and Paolo Mancasola set new three-point shooting (8 3-pt. FGM) and assist (8 a) career highs respectively in the same game. Numbers earned against the Wolf Pack were an improvement over their respective three-point shooting and assist totals of seven 3-pt. FGM and seven assists previously recorded vs. Northern Arizona (11/18/12).

AGGIES CAPTURE CAUSEWAY CLASSICIn front of a standing-room only crowd at The Nest, UC Davis scored 63 points in the second half to defeat Sacramento State 87-76 in the 111th Causeway Classic (11/20/12). The Aggies connected on 22 of 34 shots (64.7 percent) throughout the final 20 minutes of action, and built a lead as large as 14 before ending on its final 11-point margin. As a team, the Aggies were a perfect 13-for-13 from the line and won the battle of the boards from start-to-finish, outrebounding the Hornets by a final margin of 45-31. The road team has now won the last three Causeway Classics.

A PERFECT PERFORMANCEIn this season's Causeway Classic, UC Davis made all 13 of its attempts from the free throw line en route to an 11-point victory over the host Sacramento State Hornets. This was the first time that the Aggies shot a perfect 100 percent from the charity stripe since its 16-for-16 performance at UC Irvine on Mar. 16, 2008.

REBOUND AT YOUR OWN RISKLast season, UC Davis possessed a league-low rebounding margin, allowing its opponents to record an average of 5.7 more rebounds per game. This season, the Aggies have become a more aggressive team under the basket, and is ranked No. 5 in the Big West with a +1.7 rebounding margin.

FIRE AWAY!Opposing players will need to respect the long-range shooting prowess of Ryan Sypkens as the junior guard leads all players in the country with 5.0 three-point field goals made per game, and is ranked No. 2 in the Big West Conference with his .556 three-point percentage.

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDSRecording double-digit rebound totals in three of six games, he fell one rebound shy in another two contests, senior guard Ryan Howley is dominating the glass for UC Davis this season. The team's leading rebounder, Howley's 10.0 rpg and 8.3 defensive rpg averages are the best in the Big West. Howley is also the only player in the conference to average double-digit rebounds this season.

SECOND-YEAR STANDOUTAfter his first four games as an Aggie, Corey Hawkins is quickly building an argument as one of the Big West's best players as the sophomore guard leads the conference with his 20.5 ppg average. He is also No. 3 in the Big West with his .905 free throw percentage and 1.8 spg, and No. 9 in assists with 3.8 apg.

THEY COULDN'T STOP HIM OR CONTAIN HIMCorey Hawkins connected on half of his 20 shots, and made all but one of his nine free throws against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks to lead all players with 30 points. In only his second game as an Aggie, the sophomore guard became the first player since Eddie Miller posted 35 points at UC Riverside (2/26/11) to score 30 or more in a game.

SYPKENS SETS CAREER HIGHOn his 9-for-13 shooting, including seven baskets made from three, Ryan Sypkens set two new career highs in the Aggies' home opener against Northern Arizona on Nov. 18. Sypkens scored 25 points against the Lumberjacks, beating his previous best of 22 last set against Cal State Fullerton on Mar. 5, 2011. It was fitting that the basket that broke his previous career high was a three, one of seven made that afternoon from distance to set another new career mark. Sypkens' previous high last took place on Nov. 13, 2011, at San Diego State, when the junior guard made five baskets from behind the arc. Sypkens set another career high from three just two games later, and also tied a program record with eight three-point field goals made at Nevada (11/28/12).

DROPPING DIMES ALL OVER THE COURTRyan Sypkens was not the only player to set a new career-high against the Lumberjacks as Paolo Mancasola ended his day with seven assists, one more than his previous mark also set at home against Cal State Northridge (2/9/12) last season. As was the case with Sypkens, Mancasola set a new career high two games later when he earned eight assists at Nevada (11/28/12).

ROAD WARRIORSUC Davis' Nov. 18 game vs. Northern Arizona was the only occasion that fans had to watch the Aggies play in the month of November as the team competed in three road games before returning to The Pavilion on Dec. 5 to face the San Jose State Spartans - one of only two games that will take place this month. Of the five games remaining before UC Davis begins Big West competition, four will take place on the road.

READY TO PLAYIn the Aggies' season-opener on Nov. 9, at Oklahoma State, Ryan Howley earned his first career double-double by finishing with 11 points and a (then) career-high 13 rebounds. Howley's previous best of nine rebounds was originally set on Nov. 21, 2011 vs. Bryant.

MAKING THE MOST OF A FIRST IMPRESSIONThe Aggies' season-opener against the Cowboys also marked the first appearance in a UC Davis uniform for sophomore guard Corey Hawkins. Forced to sit out he 2012-12 season after transferring from Arizona State, Hawkins scored a team-high 13 points and grabbed three rebounds in his Aggie debut.

ALSO MAKING THE MOST OF A FIRST IMPRESSIONA true freshman guard, Darius Graham also turned in a solid performance throughout his 24 minutes of action in his first game as an Aggie. Graham finished with seven points, five rebounds and led all Aggies with four assists.

NBA PEDIGREESUC Davis features two players whose fathers have played in the NBA. Tyler Les is the son of head coach Jim Les who spent seven seasons in the NBA, including four with the Sacramento Kings; Corey Hawkins is the son of former NBA sharpshooter Hersey Hawkins who is currently an executive with the Portland Trail Blazers.

THE AGGIES ARE BACK IN THIS YEAR'S BRACKETBUSTERSUC Davis is one of 122 teams that will participate in the 11th-annual BracketBusters, a two-day men's college basketball event pitting potential NCAA Championship hopefuls against each other. Thirteen games from this year's event will be nationally televised on ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN3. ESPN2 will feature five BracketBusters games, while ESPNU and ESPN3 will each house four games. The 13 BracketBusters matchups with dates, times and networks will be announced Monday, Jan. 28, 2013. The televised matchups are selected by ESPN, while a Committee of Conference Commissioners determines the additional non-televised games.

BracketBusters, named because of the success of the teams in NCAA Championship play, will provide the 26 televised teams an opportunity to play other top non-conference opponents three weeks before Selection Sunday. The 96 teams not selected for BracketBusters will compete against each other through the same three days.

The 122-team field will feature teams from 13 conferences, including all 10 Big West schools. As part of the agreement, all 13 of the BracketBusters home teams in televised games, as well as the remaining 58 home squads, will play a return game at the home facility of their opponent in November or December of the 2013-14 season.

LES ASSEMBLES STRONG STAFF Head coach Jim Les went near and far when assembling his staff of assistant coaches. Kevin Nosek, a member of the Aggies' 1998 NCAA Division II Championship team, returns for his 11th year with the program. Chris Davis, who Les faced in the Missouri Valley while he was at Bradley and Davis at Drake, will start his second season with Aggies after spending three seasons in the Big East at Providence where he was the Friars' recruiting coordinator. Kyle Vogt, most recently at Western Illinois University and who has been a part of nearly 180 wins during his coaching career, joined the UC Davis men's basketball program as an assistant coach in July replacing Gus Argenal who is now at Rice. Mark Darnall enters the 2012-13 season, his second on the Aggie staff, continuing his role as UC Davis' first-ever Director of Basketball Operations after assisting Les at Bradley University as the team's video coordinator.

POSSIBLE FIRST FOR THE PAVILIONThe UC Davis-Long Beach State matchup scheduled to take place on Mar. 7, 2013 is a wildcard game for ESPN2. If selected by the network, it will be the first nationally-televised Aggie basketball game from The Pavilion.

BASKETBALL IS BACK ON BIGWEST.TVFor the eighth year, all 10 Big West member institutions will air all home and conference matches on BigWest.TV. For the 2012-13 season, all BigWest.TV events will air free of charge. BigWest.TV brings together live and on-demand video from each of the Big West schools. BigWest.TV covers conference sports, press conferences, interviews and features, including every UC Davis home and conference game for both the men's and women's programs. Also covered are select contests in men's and women's soccer, baseball, softball, and Big West Championships.